When it first began, the corn roast was an event just for the members of the local emergency response teams until outsiders expressed a desire to join, said Secretary/Treasurer Becky Knoph, an emergency medical technician. Her parents were involved with getting the Cooks Corn Roast off the ground 53 years ago.

The first year that it opened up to others as a fundraiser, the corn roast reportedly made $250. It used to be organized a little differently – Knoph said Inwood used to contact other fire departments and have playful competitions.

In 2025, though the central feature was of course the corn, there were bounce houses supplied by 906 Occasions, face painting, an auction, a raffle, kids’ bicycle giveaways, and a chicken dinner.

In recent years, the annual tally for funds raised from the corn roast has been close to $40,000, Knoph reported.

At right, ears of corn in the husks are soaked in a fire truck dump tank before making their way to the grill at left. (R. R. Branstrom | Daily Press)

“This has been such a big community event that people look forward to every year,” she said.

The unincorporated community of Cooks, about 13 miles west of Manistique, has a population of about 600. A few hundred – from Cooks, nearby towns, and elsewhere in the country – attend the corn roast, which is always on the final day of the Upper Peninsula State Fair in Escanaba.

Attendees of the event could pay $5 for all-you-can-eat corn. The 325 dozen ears of corn – ordered from Jandt Brothers Produce of Peshtigo, Wis., who gave Inwood a generous discount – were delivered Saturday and poured directly into a fire truck dump tank, where they soaked overnight. An assembly line-style process led to the corn being cooked in the husks on a long grill, partially shucked, dunked in butter and handed off to eaters.

Fire Chief Brad Benard said all of the 3,900 ears of corn were gone by the end of Sunday’s event, which started at noon.

The 400 tickets that had been available for the $12 half-chicken meals were sold out by 1:45 p.m. Knoph said that the volunteer cooks suggested upping their stock to 500 next year.

About 30 volunteers plus firefighters and emergency medical personnel staffed the Cooks Corn Roast this weekend, which served 3,900 ears of corn. (R. R. Branstrom | Daily Press)

In addition to the firefighters, EMTs and medics who worked the event, about 30 volunteers were also needed to staff the ticket booths, kitchen where other food such as bratwursts and hot dogs were prepared, and the trailer serving beer from Pike Distributors.

“It can be a challenge getting all those positions filled,” Knoph said.

Preparations begin in January for the August event. To gather all the prizes that are raffled and auctioned off, Knoph said they watch for sales, and some retailers provide discounts for items they know will benefit the corn roast and therefore the fire department.

Pike Distributors ordered banners and T-shirts for the event through Genesis Graphics, at no additional cost to Inwood Township. After showrunners passed out shirts to their volunteers, they sold the extras to help benefit the fundraiser.

In addition to the big raffle, which was drawn at 7:30 p.m., and the auction, which occupied the first few hours of the corn roast, six kids’ bicycles purchased from Walmart were also raffled off. There were two bikes for each of three age classes.

This year, the grand raffle prize – chances for which were purchased at $10 per ticket – was a 2025 Can-Am Defender side-by-side from Curtis Fish and Hunt Shop. Second prize was two kayaks; third was a shotgun; fourth, an electric smoker; fifth, a wheeled cooler. Winners were Janeice Little of Manistique, Jane Ludwig of Ypsilanti, Jeremy Spriks of Manistique, Theresa Creeden of Manistique and Kayla Colegrove of Manistique.

On Monday, the net monetary intake had yet to be calculated after accounting for expenses, but Knoph and Benard estimated that the Inwood Township Fire Department and EMS probably made between $35,000 and $40,000 at the 2025 Cooks Corn Roast.

Benard said the most successful year was the 49th corn roast in 2021, after COVID. The previous year, in 2020, the department had a small corn roast internally, so they could keep the “annual” badge going without exception.

“Thank you to everybody that came out – the new people that come and the loyal people every year,” Benard said. “They make it as big as it is. And the volunteers, everybody that worked and just the whole community that pitched in and donated and sold tickets.”

The next Cooks Corn Roast will fall on Sunday, Aug. 23, 2026.